Simone Biles is returning to the Olympics and the fiery spotlights therein.
The gymnastics superstar earned a third trip to her sport's biggest stage by cruising to victory at the US Olympic Trials on Sunday night, with a two-day total of 117,225 to earn the only automatic spot on the five-woman team.
Three years removed from the Olympic Games in Tokyo, where she withdrawn from multiple endings to prioritize her safety and mental health: Biles returns to the games looking perhaps as good as ever.
“Trusting the process and (my coaches), I knew I was going to come back,” Biles said.
A trip to France has never been in doubt since returning from a two-year hiatus last summer. All he has done in the last 12 months is win a sixth world title and his eighth and ninth national championships, both records, while cementing his status as the best in his sport.
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She will go to Paris as a prohibitive favorite to book the Olympic gold she won in 2016, but also with things to work on.
Biles backtracked after landing her Yurchenko double pole vault, a testament to both the difficulty of the vault and the immense power she generates during a skill that few male gymnasts attempt and even fewer land so cleanly.
She jumped off the beam after failing to land the side aerial, though she wasn't as frustrated as she was during a sloppy performance Friday that left her uttering an expletive for all to see.
Biles finished with a floor exercise, her signature event. While there was a small step out of bounds, there was also the unmatched world-class drop that recently got a shout-out from pop star Taylor Swift, whose song “Ready For It” opens the Biles routine.
He stepped off the podium to a standing ovation, then sat on the steps for what could be his last competitive round on American soil for quite some time.
Next stop, Paris.
The Americans will be loaded with experience as they try to return to the top of the podium after finishing second to Russia in 2020.
Reigning Olympic champion Sunisa Lee, 2020 Olympic floor exercise champion Jade Carey and 2020 Olympic silver medalists Jordan Chiles and Hezley Rivera made the final roster for Team USA. Joscelyn Roberson and Leanne Wong will travel to Paris as alternates.
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However, the Biles who will step onto the Bercy Arena court for Olympic qualifying in four weeks is not the same one who left Tokyo.
She has taken intentional steps to ensure that her life is no longer defined by her gymnastics. Biles married Chicago Bears safety Jonathan Owens in the spring of 2023, and the two are building a house in the northern suburbs of Houston where they hope to settle soon after Biles returns from Paris.
Biles heads to France as perhaps the face of the American Olympic movement, though she knows full well that more than a few of the millions who will tune in next month will find out if the demons that derailed her in Tokyo they will resurface.
And while there are still moments of anxiety, including at last year's world championships, he has put security measures in place to protect himself. He meets weekly with a therapist, even during the competition season, something he did not do to prepare for the 2020 games.
Biles, Lee, Carey, Chiles and Rivera will be considered heavy favorites in France, especially since defending Olympic champion Russia is unable to compete as part of the fallout from the war in Ukraine.
The Americans will bring their oldest women's team to the games, as Biles' unmatched longevity (she hasn't lost a meet that has started and finished since 2013) and the loosening of rules on name, image and Similarity rules at the NCAA level allow. 2020 Olympic veterans Carey, Chiles and Lee will continue to compete while capitalizing on their newfound fame at the same time.
They've relied on that experience to get back to that moment during an at-times heartbreaking meet that saw top contenders Shilese Jones, Skye Blakely and Kayla DiCello pull out with leg injuries that took them out of the mix weeks before the ceremonies opening
